Sample Job Descriptions

Under general direction of the Director of Advancement Services, the incumbent is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Major Gifts, Donations Processing, Pledge Management, and Donor Services areas of Advancement Services. The incumbent also manages special projects as assigned by the Director of Advancement Services.

The Associate Director will bring sound management expertise and a high degree of professionalism to facilitate the achievement of the division’s goals.

This is accomplished through standard setting, establishing accountability mechanisms, reporting and forecasting, providing advice and consultation to the University’s senior development and administrative staff.

The incumbent works closely with the Central and Divisional Development Officers and other Advancement Staff, Accountants in the Financial Services Office, Internal Audit, external auditors, and other university units on the management of donations.

Duties and Responsibilities

Management of Donations

Ensures that all pledges and gifts to the University are processed and receipted accurately and on a timely basis.

Manages the daily work of, Major Gifts processing, Donations Processing and Pledge Management.

Works directly with Central Development and University Colleges to ensure that pledge management policies and procedures are developed and adhered to. Ensures that pledges are collected on a timely basis.

Develops and runs reports on the status of all pledges on a monthly basis and reviews with the Director of Advancement Services so that appropriate actions can be initiated.

Works with Annual Fund to ensure that pledge collection is integrated with the telemarketing program where appropriate.

Develops and runs reports to review the data integrity of pledges such as those without schedules and ensures that the necessary corrections are made on an ongoing and regular basis.

Develops and runs a variety of statistical reports showing the performance of the Donations Processing staff and ensures that processing and receipting times continue to improve on an ongoing basis.

Develops and runs various reports for reviewing the data integrity of pledges and gifts and ensures that necessary corrections to the data are completed where discrepancies are found.

Manages the Donor Services function to ensure that all donor enquiries are answered and responded to within an appropriate time frame (ideally within a 24 hour period).

Develops and runs monthly reports on the number and nature of inquiries from donors so that a history of the customer service function is maintained over time.

Manages In-Honour and In-Memory of gift program and makes suggestions for improvement.

Reviews all acknowledgments, receipts, pledge reminders, and other correspondence resulting from pledge and gift entry for completeness and accuracy before distribution from Advancement Services.

Regularly reviews all pre-printed forms and standard letters and makes on-going design changes to improve the appearance and functionality. Works with the Central Advancement staff to find advantageous uses for including additional informational pieces with tax receipts and with the printing of and including other relevant information with correspondence.

Manages the Advancement Services shared directory on the Division of University Advancement’s network to ensure that all of the files and data there are organized and archived in a consistent and easy to retrieve structure, and that data relevant to pledge and gift processing is stored there.

Ensures that all batches and other information relevant to pledges and gifts are scanned into DIS in a timely manner and that the information is complete. Works with records department to find new applications and uses of scanning technology to improve the information stored in donor records.

Monitors pledge and gift processing controls for DIS.

Ensures that all documentation, training, and orientation materials for Advancement Services are updated and added to the Divisional web site in a timely manner including on-line web documentation for DIS reports.

Works with Business Officers, Advancement staff of the various University Colleges to identify financial and program evaluation reporting requirements and to communicate to them relevant procedures relating to the processing of donations.

Assists in the design and development of specifications, the design of system generated and other reports, testing and verification of gift and pledge data to ensure that integration with the other modules of Administrative Systems is accurate and in adherence to financial guidelines.

Establishes and documents departmental policies and procedures and updates the University’s manuals describing donations processing policies, procedures, systems and taxation rules and regulations.

Implements training programs and Administrative Systems for donations processing and management for development staff University wide.

Ensures that all IRS guidelines pertaining to the processing and receipting of donations are met.

In conjunction with the Director of Advancement Services, prepares the annual plan for Advancement Services, Pledge and Gift Processing.

Represents the Director of Advancement Services on University committees in her/his absence to provide information and ensure that the Division’s position on issues is conveyed as required.

Other Duties

Works with Campaign staff and other members of the Division of University Advancement.

Undertakes other assignments at the request of the Director of Advancement Services.

Manages a team of unionized staff which includes supervision, work assignment, performance assessment & management, grievances and all other HR related activities.

Work Complexities:

Choice of Action

Having sound knowledge of the Division’s mandate, priorities and deadlines, manages staff in establishing work schedules and project time lines; makes responsible decisions related to donor pledges/gifts; exercises judgement and initiative in the creation and interpretation of policies and guidelines on all matters relating to the management and reporting of pledges, gifts and sponsorships, makes responsible recommendations to management on financial matters; exercises judgement and discretion in the selection, appraisal and termination of staff and in resolving internal work complexities.

Evaluates staff performance and recommend salary changes for the Donations Processing staff, revise/create positions and instils goal-oriented approach consistent with achieving the division's objectives.

Consequence of Error

Errors in accuracy, judgement, tact or communication could result in a significant loss of credibility and jeopardise potential income for the University, Division and its initiatives.

Lack of judgement and discretion when dealing with donors can result in an alienation of donors, loss of financial support to the University and create a poor public image.

Failure to establish proper work schedules will result in an inability to meet deadlines and delays the work flow to other sections. Poor employee morale can also result.

Difficulty

Ensures that donations are being managed and reported in a timely and effective manner in an environment of constant change, conflicting priorities and demands from many sectors; ensures that the donor’s needs are balanced with the administrative requirements of the University and applicable legislation; maintains the overall co-ordination of a variety of specialised functions and good staff morale when unplanned changes in priorities which may require overtime, deadlines and fluctuations in workload are coupled with a high degree of complexity; diplomacy, tact and solid knowledge of policies and procedures are required.

Necessary to facilitate problem solving between staff of many different University Colleges in reaching agreement in an efficient and effective manner consistent with advancement activities.

Must be able to design specifications, develop policies and procedures and communicate these effectively.

Must be able to work independently.

Contacts

Daily contact with University officers, and divisional staff to resolve issues relating to the interpretation of policies and procedures, regular contact with Business Officers and Senior Development Officers; regular contact with senior members of the University’s academic and constituency staff on the processing of pledges, gifts and sponsorships, regular contact with senior Administrative Systems staff on the development of processing functions in Administrative Systems modules. Contact with the external auditors.

Supervision Received

Works under the general direction of the Director of Advancement Services as necessary.

The incumbent is expected to exercise sound judgement and decision making skills and briefs the Director of Advancement Services as necessary.

Supervision Exercised

Directly:
1 Assistant Manager of Advancement Services
1 Special Projects Coordinator
1 Donor Services Representative

Indirectly:
4 Senior Gift Processors
4 Junior Processors

Nature of Supervision Exercised

Responsible for the Management of Advancement Services Pledge and Gift Processing including establishing objectives and standards; evaluates performance, recommend salary increases, hires, promotes and recommends discipline and dismissal. Direct supervision, guidance of and direction to development staff.

Qualifications Required

A) Formal Education: University degree in accounting or finance or equivalent combination of education and experience. Completed accounting designation is desirable.

B) Experience: 5-10 years or more of relevant experience at a senior level. High level of knowledge in the area of accounting, financial controls and information systems. Solid knowledge of University policies and procedures.

C) Advanced computer skills required (including a working knowledge of defelopment and financial systems, Excel, Word, Access, and PowerPoint). Experience with report writing software.

D) Other: Strong leadership capabilities; excellent judgement and decision-making abilities, ability to interpret and evaluate policy and procedural requirements and produce and analyse data; effective written and oral communication skills, organisational and interpersonal skills. Excellent presentation skills.

E) Must be able to work under the pressure of time and frequent requests from multiple sources each having their own timelines and constraints and with all levels of academic and administrative staff.